Deputy Prime Minister Don Pramudwinai said on Friday he would order an inquiry into a tweet by political exile and academic Pavin Chachavalpongpun that he had been invited to give an online lecture at Prince of Songkla University.
Mr Don, who is also the foreign minister, said it would be inappropriate to invite a person who is hostile towards the nation, the monarchy and national security to lay those problems on young people.
Mr Pavin is currently an associate professor with the Centre for Southeast Asian Studies at Kyoto University in Japan. On Feb 10 he posted a message on his Twitter @PavinKyoto account saying in Thai that he had been invited to give a lecture to the economics faculty at Prince of Songkla University.
He posted in English below it, "Giving a lecture at Prince of Songkla University on international relations (US-China-ASEAN) this morning." He confirmed on Thursday that he had delivered the lecture.
Mr Don said he was not aware of the facts regarding the tweet. Sometimes, he said, tweets were posted to add colour to something.
Any questions regarding an online course should be directed first to the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, and thence to Prince of Songkla University.
As he supervises the higher education ministry, he would order that it launch a fact-finding inquiry into the tweet, which was unusual, Mr Don said.
The minister said he found it hard to believe such a lecture would be arranged, as it could be a problem for the university.
In his view, an invitation to a person who was considered problematic by authorities to give a lecture showed that the person who invited him could also be problematic.
Mr Pavin posted a message on Thursday confirming that he had delivered the lecture.
The message made reference to salim — a traditional and out-of-vogue Thai dessert and a term used by protesters as as derisive metaphor for establishment royalists.
He also posted a photo showing himself on a large monitor screen with a group of young people flashing three-finger salutes in front of it.